The Bulletin. 117 



The natural advantages of our own country and its wonderful resources 

 have forced us to high rank among the nations of earth, but as our popula- 

 tion increases the conservation of our energies and of our resources becomes 

 more Imperative. The sharp competition of the trained hands of other coun- 

 tries can be successfully met only by like skill here. Already we are told that 

 instead of an increase in the yield commensurate with their increasing popu- 

 lation, there is a falling off in the fields of the great Northwest. They attribute 

 this to lack of proper training. 



"We would not discredit college education. We believe in it and would 

 urge our boys to avail themselves of its superior advantages whenever pos- 

 sible; but serious consideration should be given to the statement made by an 

 ex-college professor, that the present system of education in the schools is 

 but following that of the early ages, and that our children are giving years of 

 time to the study of those things which will never be of any avail in the real 

 life-work that lies before them. 



Less than 5 per cent of those who reach the high school enter college. We 

 must see to it, then, that the 9.5 per cent — those who go out into the farms 

 and mills and offices — are taught the best and surest way of making a living 

 and of serving their fellows. Especially does it seem important to me that our 

 young people should learn of the soil, its composition and uses and the best 

 way to handle it so as to secure the best results. We must give them proper 

 training. 



The value of such work has been brought vividly before us by the demon- 

 stration work of Dr. Knapp, who did so much to arouse the interest of our 

 people in better methods of farming. It was this work that stirred up the 

 great Northwest, whose bankers are now enthusiastically organizing for the 

 purpose of securing the extension of that work throughout the whole country. 

 They realize that even with the marvelous richness of their lands they 

 cannot hope through the years to feed the growing millions of people without 

 adopting more systematic plans of farming, plans by which the yield may 

 be increased and yet no deterioration of the soil result. 



Senator Burton says that from 1900 to 1910 the increase in the crops of this 

 country was only 3 per cent, and according to H. H. Gross : "Within twenty 

 years we will be forced to import our principal food products from foreign 

 lands. We are facing an inevitable famine unless the soil is greatly im- 

 proved." 



Larger yields will soon be a question of necessity and not of choice. In 

 every other line it is the trained expert that produces best results. Why not 

 so on the fai'm? 



The average yield of wheat per acre in this country is 12 bushels, as against 

 28 to 35 bushels in Great Britain, France, and Germany. This is not because 

 of their better lands, but because of the careful supervision by the Govern- 

 ment and the help that is given in educational and demonstration work. In 

 Russia and India, where the supervision is lacking, the yield is far below ours. 



The State of Minnesota is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars in 

 this work. Their General Assembly recently passed the Putnam Act, which 

 carries a large appropriation and has as its chief purposes: 



1. To provide organization and local connections for the furthering of 

 agricultural work. 



2. To place elementary agricultural instruction within the reach of the 

 masses of agricultural counties. 



3. To serve as a center for the training of rural school teachers. 



The United States Government has seen the need of special training, and is 

 spending money for that purpose. The States are doing likewise, as are 

 counties and school districts. They are .beginning to teach agriculture in the 

 high schools, and all this means much for the future of our country. Good 

 farmers can be produced in the old-fashion way, but it takes a generation to 

 do it. The new way is the better and the quicker way. The trained hand 

 knows how to train another, and to-day every community is seeking the expert. 

 Old methods prevail no longer. 



It is said to be a true, though an old story, that in a certain neighborhood 

 the farmers organized for the purpose of improving their horses. They 

 imported a fine stallion at a cost of $3,000, and paid a man $75 a month to 



9 — December. 



